(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a safe guard protective equipment for the fighting arts which protects the face and head of a wearer from direct blows of an opponent in games and training of various fighting arts such as Karatedo, Taikando, Kanfu Kenpo, boxing, kendo, bayonet fencing, etc.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Although in training and games of fighting arts safe guard protective equipment has been often worn for protecting faces and heads of fighters, there has been no protective equipment which can provide sufficient protection for the face of the fighter and also ensuring sufficient field of view of the fighter, and further be constructed to be manufactured with light weight so as not to interfere with the fighter's movement, and at low cost.
Particularly among said fighting arts, Karatedo is known for a Japanese traditional fighting art. It is characterized in that it is played traditionally without any protective equipment. Up to the present time there have been special circumstances in which the protective equipment is inhibited from being worn according to the rule of formal fight.
A main reason that the use of protective equipment is inhibited is because Karatedo's image is degraded by the use of various protective equipment in Karatedo which has been developed and succeeded as a Japanese fighting art in unarmed fights without any special arms, because quick attack and defence are hindered by the wearing of protective equipment, because various protective equipment proposed in the past was heavy and complicately constructed with poor safety, and high production cost.
However, in practice, it is an inevitable problem to employ safety preventive equipment in Karatedo for preventing Karateka' body from danger, for improving attack and defence technique and promoting progress of alert game in Karatedo by striking blows at opponent's vital parts freely as much as possible with discretion-free sufficient force, for clarifying the judgment of fights with the sound of the actual blow and for ensuring safety to spread Karatedo as a sport.
To overcome this problem, the following technique according to Japanse Pat. No. 792,798 (Patent Publication No. 3700/75) is known conventionally for the protective equipment for Karatedo.
The protective equipment shown in said patent specification and drawings has side covers for covering both sides of fighter's head and incorporating cushion material, the front upper and lower ends of said covers being interconnected through separate bands engaging the brow and chin respectively, the rear sides of said covers being interconnected detachably through a fastening band and further the front having both ends of a protective mask made of transparent plastic secured fixedly for covering the wearer's face and ensuring the field of view. While a large space is formed between the upper and lower ends of the protective mask and the wearer's face for vertical ventilation, another fastening string other than said fastening band is threaded through the upper ends of the side covers for fastening them when said covers are worn.
However, in said protective equipment, the joint of the jaw may be in particular injured since all shocks caused by the frontal blow given to the protective mask are transmitted only to the brow and chin through the upper and lower bands. Also, since the protective mask is fixedly attached only at the ends of both sides, it can not ensure strong frontal attacks so that it is not suited for a full-contact blow.
Also, between the upper and lower portions of the protective mask and the wearer's face are clearances to prevent the inner surface of the mask from fogging caused by perspiration and breathing. Since the wearer's breath abuts directly against the inner surface of the protective mask to condense water droplets thereon, said clearances have a disadvantage in that they cannot effectively prevent the fogging of the inner surface of the mask, i.e. the blockage of the field of view.
Further, said protective equipment has to be provided with special bands applied to the brow and chin to secure clearances for ventilation and provided on the upper portion with the fastening string in addition to the fastening band at the rear side for attaching said equipment to the head so that it is complicate in the construction, inconvenient to use, and costly in production.